Packers Packers get rare win in statistically average day for Rodgers

The Green Bay Packers won the kind of game Thursday night that they have lost at a high rate in the past.

The rareness of the win stems from the play of quarterback Aaron Rodgers and Green Bay&rsquo;s inability to win games where he doesn&rsquo;t play particularly well.

In the Packers&rsquo; 23-10 win over the Chicago Bears, Rodgers completed 22-of-32 passes for 219 yards, one touchdown and one interception. His quarterback rating finished at an average 85.3. Rodgers was also sacked five times.

In 14 previous regular-season starts where Rodgers had a rating of 85.3 or worse, the Packers went just 3-11. The three wins (not including playoffs) include a 27-20 victory in the 2010 opener in Philadelphia (73.1 Rodgers&rsquo; rating), a 28-24 win over Brett Favre&rsquo;s Minnesota Vikings in &lsquo;10 (84.8) and a 9-0 pitcher&rsquo;s duel with the New York Jets in &lsquo;10 (59.7).

In eight previous starts with five or more sacks of Rodgers, the Packers went a dreadful 1-7. The lone win came during a 26-0 shutout of the Detroit Lions in 2009.

The Packers have won games (albeit a low percentage) when either Rodgers&rsquo; passer rating was uncharacteristically low or the sacks allowed came in bunches. But over the last 65 regular-season games &mdash; the length of the Rodgers&rsquo; era &mdash; Green Bay had never won when Rodgers&rsquo; rating was below 85.3 and five or more sacks were allowed.

Furthermore, if you believe in ESPN&rsquo;s new Total Quarterback Rating (abbreviated QBR), which factors win probability, division of individual credit and a clutch aspect into an even 100-point scale, the Packers also had never won a game where Rodgers&rsquo; final QBR was lower than 30.0.

That was, of course, until Thursday.

Rodgers had just his second regular-season finish in 17 games with a quarterback rating below 90 (at Kansas City, 2011), and the Bears registered five sacks for the first time since Miami brought down Rodgers five times in October of 2010. The Packers lost both of those games.

Rodgers&rsquo; QBR Thursday was just 29.3, the worst he&rsquo;s posted since a loss to the Vikings in November of 2008 (18.4).

Consider that Green Bay&rsquo;s only offensive touchdown came on the play directly following one of Cutler&rsquo;s four interceptions, when Rodgers beat the Bears&rsquo; Cover-2 look with a 26-yard touchdown to Donald Driver.

Overall, the Packers lined up for four field goals, with one resulting in a well-designed and well-executed fake field goal that went for a 27-yard score to Tom Crabtree.

Despite scoring 23 points, Green Bay ran exactly two plays inside the Bears&rsquo; red zone, and both went for sacks. Rodgers, typically razor sharp in making quick decisions and getting the ball out of his hand, looked 2009-like the way he held the football inside the pocket.

That said, the Packers receivers left at least 75 yards and one touchdown on the field with drops against the Bears.

Jordy Nelson first let a third-down post go off his hands on the Packers&rsquo; opening series, and later mistimed his jump in between the Bears&rsquo; Cover-2 shell on a Rodgers&rsquo; frozen rope to the sidelines.

Jermichael Finley couldn&rsquo;t haul in a well-thrown ball down the seam in the first half, and James Jones was unable to spin and catch a throw into the end zone in the third quarter, although Jones has made that kind of catch before (see: in Atlanta during 2010 playoffs).

Despite the all-around offensive struggles, the Packers never trailed and held a 20-point lead deep into the fourth quarter.

Maybe a page has been turned.

For the better part of last 18 months, the Packers lacked the ability to win a game without Rodgers and the offense playing at a high level. Despite the rare occasions before 2011, the Packers struggled to overcome a poor Rodgers&rsquo; performance and win.

Thursday&rsquo;s victory over the Bears shows this version has the capability to win a game in which Rodgers doesn&rsquo;t play at a 2011 level.